Sustainability Initiatives That Work

A look into how Coyote's mission of 'doing the right thing' is a win for all involved

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t is truly unusual to see such a large company so aggressively focused on “doing the right thing”. Specializing in commercial shipments of goods - whether by truck, train, boat, or plane - Coyote combines, reroutes, transfers shipment loads, facilitating the best route from A to B. Their highly efficient approach has been industry changing in its own right, but is also inherently “green”, having saved the equivalent of over 40,000 trips around the planet since 2012. Coyote also saves the companies paying for shipping PILES of money. Therein lies the key to Coyote’s success: Doing the right thing pays off BIG if you do it right.

Here’s an overly simple example of how this works: A company needs ½ a truck load of whatevers to go to Wherever by whenever. Another company has ½ a truck load of whatsits also going to Wherever. Coyote combines those shipments, halving the transportation costs for both companies, decreasing the C02, diesel fuel, traffic AND THEN they make sure that truck is full on its way back too. It’s easy to see why businesses with things that need to go over there, love Coyote. Read on to learn why you’ll love them too...

Coyote lives by a very simple credo: No Excuses. They infuse every aspect of their business with it. Most importantly, this is how they look at “doing the right thing”. They recycle. A lot. They banned non-reusable cups in 2011 and have since saved 1.2 million from piling up in landfills. Using communal trashcans has saved over 700,000 plastic bag liners reducing their landfill waste by over 80 thousand pounds, and saving the company over $200,000 in the process, proving green business can also be smart business.

They take care of their customers. They take care of their planet. How about their employees? In 2016 the Chicago Tribune named Coyote to its “Best Places to Work” list – for the sixth year in a row. When you walk into their massive, bee-hive-busy office on the 3rd floor of the Green Exchange, you see why immediately. The mood is up, way up. People are making things happen. There are very few offices – the vast majority of the employees work shoulder to shoulder – think Bud Fox in the beginning of Wall Street, but with a backwards hat and an Illini hoodie. The fun, fast-paced culture radiates throughout the space and informs the “family values” approach that the company is known for. Whether it’s raising money after a worker lost a loved one, participating full-force in charity fundraisers, or funding employee-run sports mentorship teams, Coyote supports the people who sustain their business. “If you take care of your employees, you’re going to win every time,” says CEO Jeff Silver.

Coyote supports over 35 unique charities and non-profits including St. Jude Children’s Hospital, for which they’ve raised well over $1 million. They partnered with the Chicago Blackhawks for their Home Team Goals initiative: for EVERY GOAL scored in the 2014-15 season, Coyote would donate to the foundation. They have raised over $200,000 for Special Olympics Minnesota at the Anoka County Polar Plunge. They raised $4,200 for the families of the victims of the 2015 Chattanooga Naval Reserve Center shooting. Doing the right thing. No Excuses.

So here’s what you have; a TRUCKING company making a HUGE impact on the environment – in a good way – being a beacon-like example of workplace culture, and touching a tremendous amount of people through sincerely philanthropic pursuits ALL WHILE they’re doing very, very, well by every measure business-wise.

Doing the right thing and having it pay off. Thank you for the example Coyote.